Today’s post contains information from my weekly podcast and talk show, We Gotta Talk. To close out the year, I’m highlighting awesome advice from some of the amazing experts and storytellers I’ve interviewed.

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We all know by now that preventive health screenings are a necessary part of our health routine. From mammograms to blood labs, to screenings for other potentially-inherited conditions, it’s important to stay on top of your health.

But when I heard about proactive health, a concept being pioneered by renowned breast cancer surgeon and founder of IV Lounge, Dr. Olga Ivanov, I had to get more information.

In this interview, we talked all about the specific ways that proactive health can change your life. It’s so good. I just know you’ll it. 😉

Proactive Health Explained

First things first: What is Proactive Health?

The simple answer is this: Think about preventive health, but taken one step further.

While preventive health will encourage you to get screenings and testing in anticipation of certain symptoms and conditions, proactive health—which is being pioneered in part by Dr. Ivanov—is all about knowing which questions to ask to keep your health in prime condition before symptoms even arrive.

A big part of proactive health, according to Dr. Ivanov, is requesting information about your body from your doctors that can give you information you need to properly supplement and eliminate any potential triggers that are causing unnecessary stress and inflammation in your body.

So of course, during the course of our conversation, I wanted specifics about what tests we need to ask our doctor for.

The Micronutrient Test: What It Is and Why to Get It

Dr. Ivanov suggested this test first as a must-do for anyone seeking to be proactive about her health.

This test, when administered by your doctor, will break down how your body is absorbing and processing nutrients. The results will break down where your obvious—and less obvious—nutritional deficiencies lie by looking at the inside of your cells and their overall health.

The Food Sensitivity Test: What It Is and Why to Get It

I have to admit, this isn’t one that I would have ever thought to take. Even though I’ve known about food sensitivity tests, I never considered them essential because I don’t experience many symptoms relating to digestion or food sensitivity.

Consider my mind now changed.

Dr. Ivanov says a food sensitivity test can tell you what foods are triggering an inflammatory response in your body. What’s so bad about inflammation? Chronic inflammation is related to a myriad of serious health issues, including cancer, diabetes, heart disease and more. It would follow that reducing this response in your body can only be a healthy thing.

Some More Great Health Advice from Renowned Breast Cancer Surgeon, Dr. Olga Ivanov

You know I couldn’t just leave it there! Here is some other great advice from Dr. Ivanov on how to stay healthy through all the stages of your life.

The Only “Diet” Mantra to Live By

So first things first, I’m not using the word “diet” here in the restrictive sense, but rather in the general sense of what types of food are best for the body.

Dr. Ivanov made sure to mention in our interview that, because our food sensitivities and guts are all different, there is rarely a “one size fits all” recommendation when it comes to the best type of diet for optimal health. But what she did say about how to eat best is something that I’ll be repeating to myself on loop:

“Eat [real] food—mostly vegetables.”

Dr. Ivanov said this after our discussion on eating clean. She mentioned a study that showed that even some of the world’s healthiest and most elite athletes, when monitored for a year, were unable to get in all the healthy nutrients we need from food alone.

The lesson? Do what you can with diet and eat as much clean produce as possible, but know that even then, you may need to supplement.

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